Former U.S. Postmaster General to Join Quad/Graphics Board of Directors

Monday, June 18, 2001

Press release from the issuing company

PEWAUKEE, WI - William J. Henderson, former Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), will join Quad/Graphics' Board of Directors, effective July 20.
"Mr. Henderson's experience and keen insight will prove invaluable to our company, given our long-standing, successful partnership with the U.S. Postal Service," said Harry V. Quadracci, Quad/Graphics president and founder. "We use the USPS to deliver a variety of products in-home - not only magazines and catalogs, but direct-mail packages, too, for our ground-residential parcel-delivery service, Parcel/Direct."
Mr. Henderson is no stranger to Quad/Graphics, the Western Hemisphere's largest privately held printer of catalogs, magazines, books and other commercial products. As a 30-year career Postal Service employee, he is familiar with the printer's industry-leading record of affecting positive postal change on behalf of its clients. In the mid-1990s, he served alongside Mr. Quadracci on the mailing industry's Blue Ribbon Committee - an initiative founded by then-Postmaster General Marvin Runyon to chart the future course and long-term development of the USPS. As a result of their work on this nine-member committee, Mr. Henderson and Mr. Quadracci formed a direct, personal friendship.
Earlier this year, Mr. Henderson was a featured speaker at Quad/Graphics' annual Mailing Conference and Post-Press University. There, he clearly outlined the challenges facing the USPS this century, including the need for reducing costs (chiefly labor) and improving productivity. In addition, he spent significant time addressing issues specific to publishers and catalogers, fielding questions directly from Quad/Graphics' clients.
"Mr. Henderson knows, first-hand, the need for decisive action to keep the USPS solvent," Mr. Quadracci said. "As a member of Quad/Graphics' board of directors, he will help us in our ongoing efforts to fast-track postal reform," Mr. Quadracci said.
During his tenure as Postmaster General (PMG), Mr. Henderson worked to secure statutory reform that would give the USPS the flexibility needed to successfully provide universal service in a rapidly changing market environment. "Undoubtedly, his contributions in this area will benefit not only Quad/Graphics, but also the printing, publishing and direct-mail industries as a whole," Mr. Quadracci said.
Mr. Henderson retired from the USPS last month after serving as PMG for four years. As PMG, he directed initiatives to improve customer service while maintaining affordability. Widely recognized for his innovativeness, Mr. Henderson's efforts created measurable results. Last year, the USPS achieved a record total-factor productivity increase of 2.5 percent. In 1999, he oversaw national agreements with three of the four postal unions - a feat not achieved in the previous 12 years.
From 1994 until his appointment as PMG in May 1998, Mr. Henderson's ingenuity was evident as Chief Operating Officer (COO). He led the agency to record delivery service performance for first-class mail as independently measured by Price Waterhouse Coopers. It was also during this time that Mr. Henderson helped the USPS (and Mr. Runyon) capitalize on automation, which contributed to three consecutive operating surpluses. As COO, Mr. Henderson was solely responsible for nationwide postal operations, including daily processing, transportation and the delivery of more than 650 million pieces of mail to more than 130 million addresses.
Having dedicated his life to the mailing industry, Mr. Henderson is well known and well respected. In 1998, the National Postal Forum granted him an honorary Mailing Excellence Award for his life's work. That same year, American University recognized his superior leadership skills with the Roger W. Jones Award of Executive Leadership, which is presented to federal career executives. In 1997, he received the Postal Service's prestigious John Wanamaker Award.